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WEDNESDAY CLEMSON FOOTBALL NUGGETS
By: Larry Williams
A thought occurred to us late last week after we spent most of our waking hours wondering how Clemson's corners might hold up in pass coverage:
What about the screen game?
Remember when Furman went up and down the field on screens as Clemson's linebackers and defensive linemen rushed 15 yards upfield while taking the quarterback's bait?
Remember when Georgia Tech had some success with this too?
Remember when N.C. State's bread and butter was ... wait for it ... screens?
Every matchup is different. So just because Wake Forest had its way with Clemson in the downfield passing game didn't mean N.C. State was equally equipped to do so.
The Tigers' defensive staff certainly wasn't unconcerned with defending the downfield passing game. The massive cushion they gave N.C. State's receivers, particularly after going up double digits, presented plenty of evidence of that.
But last week, no one that we can recall asked Dabo Swinney, Wes Goodwin or anyone else about defending the screen.
And we'll raise our hand and say we whiffed a bit in not making that a bigger focus of our coverage.
Because it was most certainly a prominent part of Goodwin's focus.
Take away N.C. State's first drive, and Saturday night really felt like a vintage Brent Venables defensive showing. It provided a calming effect to many Clemson fans who walked into Death Valley wondering if Swinney was a bit over his skis when he decided to replace Venables with Goodwin.
Because a guy can memorize as many plays as he wants, can be a master of diagramming and diagnosing schemes in a dark room during the week, but there's more to being a great defensive coordinator than that.
You have to command a room. You have to command your part of the sideline. You have to make resoundingly effective corrections when your defense shows a weakness.
Well, Goodwin put perhaps the biggest check mark in his favor yet Saturday night when his defense totally stifled the Pack's screen game.
They were as ready for it as they were unready for Furman's screens a few weeks earlier.
They almost looked like they knew exactly what was coming. And that of course was a hallmark of eight years of defensive dominance under Venables.
What came to mind was the shovel pass Pittsburgh ran for like 546 yards back in 2016.
That thing got corrected in a hurry. Everyone who tried it from that point failed.
When two defensive linemen immediately take off for the running back instead of rushing upfield, it's a good sign they're prepared for what's coming:
Wow, Barrett Carter just blows this thing up and it reminds you of Dorian O'Daniel, Isaiah Simmons and some others. Great job by Myles Murphy quickly getting outside when he sees what's coming:
A note to the pulling right tackle here. You can't just sort of touch K.J. Henry on your way to the second level, or it might end up in a massive tackle for loss:
Great job by Kevin Swint and Co. diagnosing and defending the slip screen here:
Look at the awareness of the entire defense here. There's screen action left, which brings the possibility of a throwback. But there's also plenty of attention where the ball ends up going:
And we interrupt the screen topic to give some props to the downfield pass coverage Saturday night. Murphy is a beast here from the three-man rush, but there's also excellent drop-8 coverage:
Tyler Davis is once again all over this:
And State's final screen of the day gets predictably devoured:
Two video reviews this week. Offense coming tomorrow, and that's going to be a fun one.
WEDNESDAY CLEMSON FOOTBALL NUGGETS
By: Larry Williams
A thought occurred to us late last week after we spent most of our waking hours wondering how Clemson's corners might hold up in pass coverage:
What about the screen game?
Remember when Furman went up and down the field on screens as Clemson's linebackers and defensive linemen rushed 15 yards upfield while taking the quarterback's bait?
Remember when Georgia Tech had some success with this too?
Remember when N.C. State's bread and butter was ... wait for it ... screens?
Every matchup is different. So just because Wake Forest had its way with Clemson in the downfield passing game didn't mean N.C. State was equally equipped to do so.
The Tigers' defensive staff certainly wasn't unconcerned with defending the downfield passing game. The massive cushion they gave N.C. State's receivers, particularly after going up double digits, presented plenty of evidence of that.
But last week, no one that we can recall asked Dabo Swinney, Wes Goodwin or anyone else about defending the screen.
And we'll raise our hand and say we whiffed a bit in not making that a bigger focus of our coverage.
Because it was most certainly a prominent part of Goodwin's focus.
Take away N.C. State's first drive, and Saturday night really felt like a vintage Brent Venables defensive showing. It provided a calming effect to many Clemson fans who walked into Death Valley wondering if Swinney was a bit over his skis when he decided to replace Venables with Goodwin.
Because a guy can memorize as many plays as he wants, can be a master of diagramming and diagnosing schemes in a dark room during the week, but there's more to being a great defensive coordinator than that.
You have to command a room. You have to command your part of the sideline. You have to make resoundingly effective corrections when your defense shows a weakness.
Well, Goodwin put perhaps the biggest check mark in his favor yet Saturday night when his defense totally stifled the Pack's screen game.
They were as ready for it as they were unready for Furman's screens a few weeks earlier.
They almost looked like they knew exactly what was coming. And that of course was a hallmark of eight years of defensive dominance under Venables.
What came to mind was the shovel pass Pittsburgh ran for like 546 yards back in 2016.
That thing got corrected in a hurry. Everyone who tried it from that point failed.
When two defensive linemen immediately take off for the running back instead of rushing upfield, it's a good sign they're prepared for what's coming:
Wow, Barrett Carter just blows this thing up and it reminds you of Dorian O'Daniel, Isaiah Simmons and some others. Great job by Myles Murphy quickly getting outside when he sees what's coming:
A note to the pulling right tackle here. You can't just sort of touch K.J. Henry on your way to the second level, or it might end up in a massive tackle for loss:
Great job by Kevin Swint and Co. diagnosing and defending the slip screen here:
Look at the awareness of the entire defense here. There's screen action left, which brings the possibility of a throwback. But there's also plenty of attention where the ball ends up going:
And we interrupt the screen topic to give some props to the downfield pass coverage Saturday night. Murphy is a beast here from the three-man rush, but there's also excellent drop-8 coverage:
Tyler Davis is once again all over this:
And State's final screen of the day gets predictably devoured:
Two video reviews this week. Offense coming tomorrow, and that's going to be a fun one.
